In Lisa’s post about legacy marketing, she extols the virtues of doing things well and I couldn’t agree more especially when considering the legal realities associated with industry codes–AdvaMed, PhRMA, CMSS, et. Al. If those acronyms are alphabet soup to you then please take the time to read up and come back, I’ll wait.

If your management team wants you to just dole out money for customer’s marketing activities without a formal program, push back. Regulators can see the brightly lit money trail a mile away. Here’s an example:

[Newly added 10/10/11]

Here’s a Press Release from Office of the Inspector General about a military cardiologist getting sentencing because of benefits received from a variety of activities including dinners with sales reps.

“That’s according to a new report from the state Department of Public Health, which said the payments included speaking and consulting fees, meals, and education and marketing programs.”

Doing it right is more than a compliance issue–it’s a mindset. People value what they pay for and they are more engaged in success when they have skin in the game. Everybody wins when customer marketing programs are both compelling and compliant.

Like this:

THEME: Advancing Care through Access, Cost and Innovation: Opportunities in the New Era of Med Tech

Lisa and Debbie spent two glorious days at this inaugural event. It was incredible to be in a room filled with powerful, successful women all from the MedTech industry. It was a nice change of pace to have the focus just on devices and diagnostics (no pharma or biotech, with all due respect). Speakers from all corners of the industry were featured in keynotes and in well organized panel discussions—each could have gone on for hours. The setting, refreshments and accommodations were spectacular, especially for out-of-area attendees.

Hats off to the catalysts and organizing committee; since you were able to pull off a stunningly successful event, you have a group ready to set a new course for evolving the industry that has captured our hearts and minds.

Lots of unmet needs in chronic diseases – primarily time to support and reinforce care protocols: Need to be creative and consider other avenues to assist patients to assist themselves, i.e. Physician extenders – as in nurse educators at drugstores to meet and work with patients, web-based live interactive coaching to reinforce patient specific protocols and fundamentals for disease management – because the patient doesn’t absorb everything in the 15 minute visit with the doctor.

Pediatrics – the very definition of unmet needs. Nearly everything used in pediatric care is derived from remaking adult designed product – understandably it is not profitable to make for every size pediatric patient, however manufacturers should make for range, specifically for pediatrics. Also, observe how physicians work – what processes, patient flow, how they use the product before designing something new

Clinical studies are designed to show benefit from mortality, vs. Quality of Life – there is a real opportunity in the QOL realm.

Manufacturers need to ensure that their developments DO NOT add steps, process additions, time, inconvenience or demand additional resources be added for the sake of using a new product – think reduction of time, resources, learning curves of the providers simultaneously while benefiting the patient

Unmet needs can best be defined by [manufacturer’s] assembling all the available data (instruments, processes, tx protocols) to find the needle in the haystack – that makes it better for the patient and easier for the physician. Follow a physician through a day of patient treatment BEFORE making the perfect widget. Great opportunities in development that align with defining care protocols that take into account risk stratification leaving room for further intervention if indicated